Smith Leads Jackrabbit Volleyball Team

Sunday, September 24

Brookings, S.D.

5 p.m.

South Dakota State University

2-13, 0-3

North Dakota State

11-3, 2-0

North Dakota State

South Dakota State

Photo by: Inertia Sports Media/Dave Eggen

9/24/2017 8:00:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Photo Gallery

Sophomore Ashlynn Smith led the South Dakota State volleyball team in kills but it wasn't enough as the Jackrabbits lost in three sets to North Dakota State Sunday evening in front of 510 fans in Frost Arena.

The Jackrabbits (2-13, 0-3) lost 25-13, 25-21 and 25-22 to the Bison (11-3, 2-0).

Smith tied a career high with a match-high 12 kills. Junior Mattison Munger registered a double-double with 13 set assists and 10 digs. Senior Ellie Benson recorded a match-best 18 digs.

Erika Gelzinyte led NDSU with 10 kills.

Turning Points
After starting slow in the first set, the Jackrabbits trailed 9-6 after a Smith kill. SDSU was still within three points after a NDSU error made it 13-10, but the Bison then used an 11-3 run to finish the set.

NDSU held a three-point lead in the second set at 20-17. The teams traded points with kills from junior Sierra Peterson, sophomore Makenzie Hennen, junior Payton Richardson and freshman Maddie Fay until a Jackrabbit service error ended the set.

The third set featured long rallies with 50 digs between the two teams. The Jackrabbits spotted North Dakota State a 10-4 lead, but outscored NDSU 14-10 to pull within 20-18 on a Richardson kill. The Bison pulled it out with a Gelzinyte kill.

They said it
"We tried a few different things today. I wouldn't say they all worked perfectly, but I think it got some of the kids thinking. We just had to try something different. We saw some improvement in certain areas that we wanted to see improvements in," third-year head coach Nicole Cirillo said. "Throughout the match, we still have an issue of starting the match out slow. In set three, we make a great comeback, but we were in such a big hole early. We are still working hard. We are still trying to figure out what is going to work.

"Better defense for us. Much better defense for us. Just switching where some of our players helped tremendously. We put Ellie in the middle of the court and let her roam and read a little bit more. By far that was the best change that we made," she said.

Notables

Mattison Munger recorded 13 set assists and now has 1,912 career assists. She ranks 10^th on the SDSU career list.
Hanna Jellema tied a career-high with 10 digs.

Up Next
South Dakota State returns to action Friday at 7 p.m. vs. Oral Roberts in the friendly confines of Frost Arena.

For more information on the South Dakota State volleyball team, follow the Jackrabbits on Twitter (@GoJacksVB) or like South Dakota State volleyball on Facebook.

-GoJacks.com-